The Truth about Gun Control (Encounter Books, 2013). Who is sovereign in the United States? Is it the people themselves, or is it an elite determined to rule citizens who are seen as incapable of making choices about their own lives? This is the central question in the American gun-control debate. Animated video featuring a section
of the book. 4 minutes. Reprinted in Saving the Republic: The Fate of Freedom in the Age of the Administrative State. Roger Kimbal, ed. (Encounter Books, Jan. 23, 2018).

A Conspiracy
Against Obamacare: The Volokh Conspiracy and the Affordable Care Act (Palgrave MacMillan). The legal scholars who fought and defeated the unconstitutional power grab.

The Racist Influence on Gun Control Laws. When Ida B. Wells urged blacks to use repeating rifles for defense against lynch mobs, gun control advocates invented a new type of gun licensing. Epoch Times. Feb. 5, 2019.

In the Courts and Congress

Pena v. Horan. Cert. petition. No. 18-843. Feb. 1, 2019. Amicus brief for Second Amendment law professors, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, Mountain States Legal Foundation, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. California's "microstamping" mandate creates a de facto ban on all new models of semiautomatic pistols. The Ninth Circuit opinion uphold the ban was based on speculation and refusal to consider the plaintiffs' evidence.

Mance v. Whitaker. Cert. petition. No. 18-663. Dec. 20, 2022. Amicus brief for Second Amendment law professors, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. Challenge to federal ban on interstate handgun sales between consenting states. Argues that Court should take the case to explicate the proper test for Second Amendment challenges, due to conflicts in the lower courts, and nullification of the Second Amendment in some courts.

Chiafalo v. Washington. No. 953-47-3. Dec. 5, 2018. Washington Supreme Court. Amicus brief of Independence Institute. Based on original public meaning of Article II and the Twelfth Amendment, presidential electors are free to vote their conscience, and cannot be constrained by state law.

Maryland Shall Issue v. Hogan. No. 16-cv-3311-ELH (D. Md. Oct. 5, 2018). Amicus brief of International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association, International Association of Law Enforcement Firearms Instructors, 11 law professors, Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee For The Right To Keep And Bear Arms, Jews For The Preservation Of Firearms Ownership, Millennial Policy Center, and Independence Institute. Maryland's burdensome handgun licensing system in contrary to original understanding, history, and tradition, and cannot pass heightened scrutiny.

Timbs v. Indiana. No. 17-1091. U.S. Sup. Ct. Sept. 11, 2018. Merits amicus brief. The Independence Institute joins a broad civil liberties coalition in an amicus brief led by the Drug Policy Alliance. The issue is whether the Eighth Amendment's Excessive Fines Clause should be incorporated against the States. The brief details modern abuses of forfeiture laws, and argues that no government can have a legitimate interest in imposing an "excessive" fine.

Worman v. Healey. Aug. 29, 2018. Amicus brief for 11 law professors specializing in the Second Amendment, the Second Amendment Foundation, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, Jews for the Preservation Ownership, Independence Institute, and Millennial Policy Center. Massachusetts ban on common firearms and standard magazines violates Supreme Court precedent. Such arms have been traditional American arms since the 19th century. Cato Institute summary.

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